Conventional inflatable sport balls, such as basketballs, footballs, soccer balls, volley balls and playground balls, are inflated through a traditional inflation valve using a separate inflation needle that is inserted into and through a self-sealing inflation valve. A separate pump, such as a traditional bicycle pump, is connected to the inflation needle and the ball is inflated using the pump. The inflation needle is then withdrawn from the inflation valve which self-seals to maintain the pressure. This system works fine until the sport ball needs inflation or a pressure increase and a needle and/or pump are not readily available.
The present invention provides a sport ball which has a self-contained inflation mechanism. The object is to be able to inflate or add pressure to a sport ball without the need for separate inflation equipment such as a separate inflation needle and pump. Specifically, the invention relates to a sport ball which has a self-contained pump device which is operable from outside the ball and which pumps ambient air into the ball to achieve the desired pressure. More specifically, the pump device provides a chamber within the ball with means for admitting ambient air into the chamber and provides means for forcing that air from the chamber through one-way valve means into the interior volume of the ball. The pump device most specifically comprises a piston and cylinder arrangement with the piston operable from outside the ball.